Danbury Resident Among Top 8 Wealthiest Americans: Forbes 400

DANBURY, CT — By Alfred Branch (Patch Staff) — Peter Buck, 85, of Danbury, is the sixth wealthiest Connecticut resident, with a net worth of $2.4 billion, according to a new report from Forbes Magazine. The co-founder of the Subway sandwich empire, Buck is the the 290th wealthiest American.

Greenwich resident Ray Dalio, founder of the Westport-based hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, is again Connecticut's wealthiest resident, according to the 2016 Forbes 400 ranking of America's richest citizens.
Dalio, 67, whose firm is the largest hedge fund in the world, is worth $15.9 billion, making him the 25th wealthiest person in America, Forbes writes. His wealth increased from $15.3 billion last year, and his firm is set to receive a $52 million economic incentive package from the state to expand.

To make the list of 400, a person had to have a net worth of at least $1.7 billion for 2016, according to the publication. As such, a record 153 billionaires did not make the ranking. Fellow hedge funder Steve Cohen, 60, also from Greenwich, is Connecticut's second wealthiest resident, with a net worth of $13 billion. He founded Point72 Asset Management, and he is the 31st richest person in the United States.

In third place in Connecticut is Paul Tudor Jones II, 62, founder of Tudor Investment Corporation, who is worth $4.6 billion, according to Forbes. The Greenwich resident is the 120th wealthiest person in America.
Karen Pritzker, 58, is fourth in the group of Connecticut residents, with a net worth of $4.3 billion. Her wealth is from an inheritance of a portion of her family's hotel empire (Hyatt) and investments. The Branford resident came in as the 131st wealthiest person in America.

Connecticut's fifth wealthiest resident is Stephen Mandel Jr., of Greenwich, with $2.5 billion. The 60-year-old founder of the hedge fund Lone Pine Capital is the 274th richest person in the U.S.

Heirs of the Cargill fortune, Alexandra Daitch, 53, of Old Lyme, and Lucy Stitzer, 56, of Greenwich, round out the in-state list of Connecticut's wealthiest residents. The sisters are each worth $1.77 billion and are tied for 374th place among the richest Americans, according to Forbes. Stitzer also chairs the investment company Waycrosse.

Of the overall Forbes 400, Bill Gates is No. 1, for the 23rd consecutive year (this year marks the 35th year Forbes has published the list), with a net worth of $81 billion. Second is Amazon's Jeff Bezos, with $67 billion, and third is Warren Buffett, $65.5 billion.

The rest of the overall top 10:

• Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook, $55.5 billion
• Larry Ellison, Oracle, $49.3 billion
• Michael Bloomberg, $45 billion
• Charles Koch, Koch Industries, $42 billion
• David Koch, Koch Industries, $42 billion
• Larry Page, Google, $38.5 billion
• Sergey Brin, Google, $37.5 billion

Some additional facts about the Forbes 400:

• Net worth increased for 187 members (vs. 202 in 2015); decreased for 114 members (vs. 119 in 2015); and remained even for 63 members (vs. 44 in 2015).

• Self-Made Category: 266 members of the list are self-made billionaires, 65 inherited their wealth and 69 inherited at least a portion and are working to increase it.

• Women: 50 (plus an additional seven women who share fortunes and are listed with their husbands) vs. 46 in 2015 (an additional seven women last year shared fortunes with their husbands).
• Twenty-six people who were on the 2015 Forbes 400 dropped off the list, while another six died; three were moved to Forbes’ list of Richest Families. Notable drop-offs include Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos; William “Bill” Ackman, Pershing Square Capital Management; Jack Dorsey, Twitter; and Nicholas Woodman, GoPro.

Click here to view the entire Forbes 400
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